Career Management Alliance Blog

The profile (or summary or qualifications section) of your resume is going to make you or break you. So why am I repeatedly seeing resumes that start with “Results-driven…” “Experienced…” Skilled…” or some similar tired language?

The profile is where you must make the potential employer stand up and take notice. No one notices language that 150 other candidates also wrote on their resume. Everyone considers themselves to be results-driven, experienced and skilled. So let’s talk about how to make your profile specific to you and you alone.

1) What can you actually come into the organization and do? This requires long consideration. The potential employer doesn’t only want to see what you know; he wants to see if your knowledge will benefit his company.

2) What are you historically known for? Evaluate your successes over the arc of your career. Is there a pattern? Do you nearly always accomplish turnarounds? Have you led a series of good start-up operations?

3) What are your areas of expertise? Go above and beyond key words in this section. Your expertise has more to do with HOW you do what you do. That means your flair, your style and your approach.

Applying these 3 points will get you noticed in the critical first 30 seconds. Then the employer will be more likely to spend a few minutes reading the remainder of your resume. Make sure the career history you present includes multiple examples that support your statements in the profile.

By Jewel Bracy DeMaio

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I came across a question posted on a mailing list I receive and I was intrigued with the thread of conversation, as well as, comments from an acquaintence with years of professional experience working with job boards.  I wanted to pass it along and encourage you to comment from your own experience.

The question had to do with including a street address and home phone number as contact information across the top of the resume.  Several professional resume writers indicated they only include a candidate’s name, city, state, and zip code due to problems with identity theft.  There was also concern that HR reps use the address information to screen candidates based on “too long a commute”.  Since I include all contact information, and know there are several ways to obtain personal information on the web simply by having a name, I passed this question on to a professional who works with job boards daily in his work with a resume service.  His comments follow:

If currently employed and the search is a secret- you obviously post confidentially. Through my [resume] service, you choose confidential and you make sure to strip out anything on the pasted resume and cover letter that can identify you. If not through my service, you be even more careful and cover up anything that can give you away including company names, exact job descriptions as they’re written up by the company you work for, etc. If NOT currently employed - You don’t post confidentially.

It is FACT that those who post confidentially receive less hits. It’s human nature. If you have 5 candidates that look great on paper, and 3 have contact info. attached including a name, and 2 do not, the first three are contacted first. Those who use job boards [professionally] KNOW that recruiters plant “traps” on the boards in the form of confidential candidates. They’re fake candidates planted by the recruiter to create job orders. Hiring authority emails the “confidential searcher” and the next thing you know you hear back from a recruiter saying “Actually, I placed that person but have others just like him/her…lets talk”. Many are skeptical of confidential candidates who look too good to be true. often they are.  THAT SAID…it doesn’t mean confidential searchers will not be contacted…just not as much as the non-confidential. The point of using the boards is to maximize your chances of being contacted so unless your search is a secret, I see no reason to post  confidentially. 

If the job seeker is still not comfortable with it, even if not employed, then I can see them giving a fake street address…but the moment you give a fake phone number, you just eliminated those hiring authorities who are more inclined to pick up the phone and call over email. In a stack of 20 people they like, they simply may not email each one. They’ll call quickly and see if they can schedule an interview. I wouldn’t doctor names or phone numbers if your search is not secret. Maybe you change the company names on the resume to “Confidential” but  don’t change phone number and eliminate potential interested parties in reaching you.  

Your experiences?

Faith Sheaffer-Thornberry

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Are you onto this craze about “The Secret,” which says if you visualize, prepare and communicate, then what your heart truly wants will come to you? I think it would be beneficial to apply these concepts to resumes, the job search and interviewing.

I had a client recently who had a long, solid, high-level history in technology. He started his own consulting firm a few years ago, and was looking to re-enter corporate America. My recommendation was that while his history contained broad expertise and the foundation for excellent accomplishments, the existing resume failed to carry the impact required.

The response was a barrage of negativity, at himself, but voiced to me. “I’m too old; they’re going to see that.” “I’ve been out the job market for too long.” “What if they think I want to come in and take over?” “They’re going to assume the salary I want is too much.” And the client went on with more.

Whoa! Listen, half this battle is you have to have a solid work history. The other half is you need to present that in a stand-out resume. And the other, extra half is attitude, attitude, attitude.

The fact is, the client’s age issue can be easily handled in a resume so he’s positioned as experienced, not old. The right tone in a resume can readily communicate the candidate does not need to be the “top dog,” with the high salary associated with that. And as far as being out of the job market, the candidate could present several successful, strategic engagements from his most recent consulting experience.

So what to do about this attitude?  That’s the secret. There’s no room for negativity in the secret. Visualize the position you want to be in; that doesn’t mean just saying to yourself, “I want X.” It means internalizing your goal in your core. Prepare: a good resume, and strong interviewing skills. Communicate: put the resume out there, network, renew relationships, leverage existing relationships. Exude that positive energy, and there’s a much better chance that good things will happen.

By Jewel Bracy DeMaio

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“Worn out phrases and longing gazes won’t get you where you want to go, no!” If you’re a Boomer reading this, you’ll probably know who sang those words in the 60’s and 70’s; I just checked with my Millenial offspring and they don’t have a clue. In any event, my client was sharing with me some of his ‘pet peeves’ regarding candidates he interviews. He encouraged me as a career coach to puh-leeze tell job seekers to avoid tired, overworked, and annoying words when discussing their credentials for a job. Do you use any of these words on this list of Buzzwords Gone Bad?

posted by: billie sucher

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Athena D. Merritt’s recent article in the Philadelphia Business Journal alerted me to an interesting partnership between IBM Corp. and the U.S. Department of Treasury: The FedExperience Transitions to Government program.

Designed to serve as a model for other companies and federal departments and agencies, IBM will match its experienced workers who are leaving voluntarily with some of the 162,000 federal jobs that are expected to become open in 2008. This scenario looks like a variation on the familiar saying, “when a door closes, a window opens.”  The retirement of fellow Boomers and new vacancies will create opportunities for those who are leaving private sector jobs, but not yet ready for the golf course…

The Federal government offers a broad range of opportunities for experienced workers, and the government is becoming a more flexible employer: check-out the opportunities at USA Jobs®.  Baby Boomers, many of whom believe that age will be a barrier to the attainment of  the second or continuing career they need or want, will want to consider that state and federal governments are likely to be among the most non-discriminatory of employers (Federal law prohibits discrimination based on race, gender, national origin, religion, and age; local statutes may extend protection based on other factors not related to job performance)

Candidates whose experience has been in the private sector may find the federal and state application process to be daunting: candidates must express their value via Knowledge - Skills - Abilities (KSAs). A career professional can guide you through this process; it is similar to other assessments that are part of the “tool bag” of career strategists. Links to information about this process are available through the United States Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.

Posted by Karen P. Katz

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I just hung up from talking with an area recruiter and wanted to pass on some inside information that confirms what I have advised candidates for years.  I love when that happens!  This particular recruiter works at the largest employer in my county, and she receives over 100 applications a day.  I called to ask about a particular candidate I was working with and she stated that unless someone follows-up regarding a particular application, there is a good chance it will never see the light of day.

 Did all you job seekers catch that?  You must follow-up on internet job applications whenever possible.  Granted, this is an unscientific survey of one employer, however; where there is one, there will be others.  Take charge of your own job search.  Why rely on on the kindness of strangers?

Faith Sheaffer-Thornberry

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